Bella's Promise
by Elliot Pole
Summary: The story of the real Bella Swan. She reads the Twilight series and thinks it is ridiculous. Her mother ships her to Forks, where she meets a girl named Stromba. And there's a vampire named Dedward Lucan who wants her blood...
1. Chapter 1

**Bella's Promise**

Bella Swan stared at herself in the mirror. She thought she was uglier than you. In fact, she thought she was the ugliest girl in the world, even uglier than Ashley Tisdale.

Her mother had tried to get her out of these insecure thoughts, so she bought her a series of four books by one Stephenie Meyer. Bella read the first one, entitled _Twilight, _and was shocked to discover that Miss Meyer used her name for the main character. But Meyer didn't know her, did she? Maybe the woman was spying out the window…watched her undress before she got in the bath. Unpleasant thought! Bella went over to the window and looked out.

There was nothing there but a cat that had been run over by a car. Roadkill. Bella caught herself wondering what it would taste like, then slapped herself hard across the face. She had no idea where these disgusting ideas came from. Turning from the window, she sat down again and continued _Twilight._

_Why does she keep repeating this stupid sentence over and over about his eyes? _Bella asked herself. _Oh well…_

She reached the end. So, Edward had taken Bella as his girlfriend. Well, the fictional Bella was lucky…at least someone liked her, even though he'd been dead for 100 years…

Then Bella started the next book, _New Moon. _She cried when Edward left Bella, because she felt compassionate with the girl who shared her name. She knew that she, the real Bella Swan, would never have a boyfriend. Maybe she should become a lesbian...

She thought Bella was an idiot for not figuring out that Jacob was a werewolf. Once Bella grasped this, she hoped that the fictional Bella would see how great Jacob was and forget the conceited vampire. But alas, Bella loved only Edward.

The real Bella laughed when the fictional one jumped off the cliff into the rapids below. She wanted her to die. But no such luck. (Otherwise the book would've been much thinner, since it was told in the first person.) Bella went to Italy with Alice Cullen, whom the real Bella actually liked. Then there was the question about "grand theft auto." Bella thought, _What the hell is THAT doing in there?_

Bella has to save Edward from his own suicide attempt. The Bella that was reading the book liked the Volturi, especially Jane. She hoped the Volturi would play a larger role in the next two books. And with that, she started _Eclipse._

She felt perturbed at all of Jacob's attempts to steal Bella from Edward. It bothered her that Bella was considering choosing between them. _Pick one, dammit! _the real Bella thought.

She came to the end of it, disappointed with the battle with Victoria and the fact that Bree died instead of one of the Cullens. The Volturi infuriated her. So she moved on to _Breaking Dawn, _hoping for a Volturi-Cullen battle. It never came. Edward did not die. Jacob fell in love with Renesmee, the daughter of Bella, named after both Bella and Edward's mothers. The description of Renesmee was grotesque. The real Bella almost puked.

She finished it and looked in the mirror, still thinking herself ugly. Going downstairs, she found her mother waiting for her.

"Did _Twilight _help?"

"No, it did not help, Maman. It made me feel how hopeless it is to love. Edward died in the end."

"Really? That's so sad!"

Bella knew her mother had not read the books, so she felt calm about lying.

"I'm sure I'll find you something to cheer you up."

"Nothing will cheer me up, Maman. I'll never even have a Peewee for a boyfriend…look, I'm uglier than Shrek!"

"You're not ugly, sweetheart!"

"Yes I am!" Bella shouted, running to her bedroom and slamming the door.

Two days later, Bella came home from school to find her mother waiting in the siting room.

"Bella, I'm shipping you off to Washington."

"What?"

"I can do nothing for you. I'm just a kindergarten teacher, and I can't deal with insecure teenagers. I'm sure your father will have a better job."

"But Maman—" Bella protested.

"Don't give me that look. You think Phoenix boys will not want you; I'm sure boys will be clamoring after you in Forks."

"Forks? I thought Dad lived in Seattle."

"No, it's Forks…a small town a few miles from Seattle. Charlie loves it there."

"I won't. It's bound to be cold, and rainy, and Lord knows what else."

"You are going, Bella, and that's final. You leave on Saturday. Go start packing."

Bella trudged up the stairs in a huff. Her mother didn't understand her. How could she just send her away, when she needed to be with her mother most right now? She hadn't even seen her father since she was ten…what was Maman thinking?

Renee forced her daughter screaming onto the plane. A flight attendant buckled her up and sat on her so that she wouldn't be able to run off before the plane lifted into the air. Finally, when the plane's engines were roaring, the flight attendant got off her and left her in peace.

All Bella could think about was how she wished she could fit in those little tiny windows on the airplane, and crawl out, letting herself fly till she landed splat on the ground, never to live again. No boy would have to see her ugly mug. What joy!

Hours later, the plane landed. A boy smiled at her at the luggage area. She forgot about wanting to kill herself. She collected her bags and went to sit down.

Shortly thereafter, her father appeared. He shook her hand, and she got up, followed him out to his truck, and they drove to his house in silence, Bella thinking all the while that life in Forks could hardly be better than life in Phoenix.


	2. Chapter 2

**Bella's Promise **

**Chapter Two**

She barely spoke to her father that night. He showed her the room she'd be sleeping in; it was covered with Hello Kitty stuff, which was odd, since Bella had never liked Hello Kitty and as far as she knew, she was Charlie Swan's only daughter.

That night she had a dream that a fat lady dressed as a mushroom was talking to her. _"My dear, you need to leave this false reality and come to the real one. There is nothing good in your future here. In the real reality you meet a perfect man and he loves you forever. But here…well, it's a bad place."_

The lady in the dream showed Bella a mirror. In the mirror, Bella looked dazzling.

"_Put your head to the glass dear. Go on. Tomorrow you'll wake up in the real world. It'll be lovely…"_

Then Bella woke up. Tomorrow would be her first day of school in Forks, and she meant to be ready for it.

Her father had pancakes and sausage ready in the kitchen when she came down. She complimented him on his cooking, but he said, "Cooking? What cooking? That was Robopod." He gestured to something behind her.

Bella turned around, and screamed. Standing there was a giant green figure on wheels with nine arms. It reminded her vaguely of a Pokemon called Metapod.

"Robopod does all our chores," Charlie explained, once Bella stopped screaming.

"That thing is freaky," she said.

"Well, so is everything in Forks. I believe I saw a horse that changes colors every second yesterday."

"Were you watching _The Wizard of Oz?"_

"Oh, yeah, that must've been it."

They both laughed at this joke. It seemed to break the ice. They were father and daughter again.

That day, they shared tales of the past seven years. Charlie told Bella about his job as a policeman, and Bella told him about her friends and teachers that she'd miss.

"I'm sure you'll make new friends, Bella. And this is a small town; everyone knows one another. It'll be much different from what you're used to. Oh, I almost forgot. My friend Billy Whitefield is bringing a truck for you today."

"Really?" Bella's eyes lit up.

"Yeah, but don't get too excited. It's used."

"Doesn't matter. I've never had a car before."

Around a quarter to four, the doorbell rang. Charlie answered it, and a man in a wheelchair was there. He had a short, stubby black beard, and his eyes looked as if they had known much hardship.

"Bella, this is my friend Billy," Charlie said. Bella extended her hand; Billy's handshake was rough.

"So, you're the little princess Charlie has been telling me about. Showed me pictures…I see you've lost your baby fat."

Bella cringed at this remark. When she was ten, she had still retained her baby fat. People kept telling her it would disappear when she grew older, and she would turn out as pretty as her mother. They lied, and she hated being reminded of this factor.

"I'm sure Charlie has already told you why I'm here. Well, have a looksie." Billy rolled his wheelchair aside. Bella saw a red truck parked next to her father's black one. It seemed unremarkable. She walked closer to examine it, and saw on the side a streak of something that was apparently supposed to resemble fire…yellow and orange with a black outline. She went around it and saw this streak on the other side too. It seemed to be a form of decoration.

"What do you think?" Billy called from the porch.

"It's wonderful!" Bella said, running toward him and taking the keys from his outstretched hand. She shook hands with him again, since she wasn't sure how to hug someone in a wheelchair.

"Well, Charlie, I've got to run. My son Jacob is fiddling with motorcycle parts…I'm not sure he knows what he's doing, though if ever there was a natural-born mechanic, he is one."

Billy rolled his wheelchair toward the brown Toyota that was his. A woman sat in the front of it, and she got out, helped Billy into the passenger seat, then carefully stowed the wheelchair into the backseat. Bella and Charlie watched until they drove away.

Bella wanted to test-drive her truck immediately, so Charlie grabbed his coat and they went together. He needed to show her where the school was and stuff.

On their way back to the house, Bella saw a mansion in the distance and asked Charlie who lived there.

"Oh, that's the Lucans. They're a strange bunch…all five of them are students in the high school. I expect you'll meet them tomorrow, though I wouldn't count on it. They like to keep to themselves."

"Must be wealthy, to have a mansion."

"Yeah, but nobody cares about that. The father, Carlisle, is a doctor."

"Ah…if I were rich enough to live in a mansion, I wouldn't be a doctor. But then, I get queasy at the sight of blood."

Charlie watched football on the television that night, and Bella sat in her bedroom, re-reading _Wuthering Heights _till she fell asleep.

The next day, she dressed in a plaid dress, grabbed a slice of toast from Robopod, and hurried out the door. Then she drove her truck to school. She caught a glimpse of a silver Volvo in the parking lot, expecting it to belong to one of the Lucans.

Entering the school, she followed a narrow hallway until she found the guidance counselor's office. She entered, ignoring the stares of two girls sitting in the office and looking at a woman behind a desk..

"You're the new girl? Charlie's daughter?" asked the woman behind the desk.

"Yes, I'm Bella Swan."

"Well, let's get you signed up for classes. Your transcript from Norton arrived in the mail yesterday." The woman got her computer set up to make a schedule. "Okay, we'll have to put you in core classes." She clicked something on the screen. "That leaves you with two electives. What would you like to take?"

"What do you have?"

The woman named half a dozen different things. Bella finally settled for Journalism and Home Ec. Then the bell rang. "That's first period. Jessica, will you be kind enough to escort Bella to her first class?" the woman said, turning to one of the girls still staring at Bella. "I believe you have English first as well."

"Uh, sure, Ms. Olsen," the girl said. She had mousy-brown hair and her eyes were blue. "So, you're Bella?" she asked, turning to our .

"Yes."

"Your father's Officer Swan?"

"That would be him."

They walked out of the office together. Jessica led Bella to Classroom 23B, where their English class was. Bella expected Jessica to sit next to her in class, but the other girl chose to sit with her friends, and there were no empty seats remaining in her vicinity. So Bella sat in a desk between a girl wearing all black and a boy with frizzled red hair. The teacher came in.

"Okay, class, get out your copies of _Under the Volcano. _Today we will be analyzing…" Her voice trailed away as she caught sight of Bella. "Oh, I forgot we'd be having a new student today! Please introduce yourself."

The teacher beckoned Bella to come forward, and Bella heard other people in the class snickering, though she noticed that the Goth girl did not. She got up and stood in front of the class.

"Tell us your name and where you are from."

_God, is this kindergarten? _Bella asked herself. "My name is Bella Swan, and I'm from Phoenix, Arizona."

"Does it rain a lot in Phoenix?" one kid wondered.

"No, it's very sunny," Bella said, trying to ignore the giggles of girls in the back row, including Jessica's.

"Class, Phoenix is a very big city. We'll have to make Bella feel at home in Forks, since she's' probably not used to small towns. Bella, you may take a seat. Stromba, share your copy of _Under the Volcano _with Bella, since she's new here. I'll expect you to have your own copy tomorrow." The teacher looked meaningfully at Bella. "Even if you have to drive all the way to Seattle for it."

"Yes, of course," Bella said aloud. There were more giggling from the girls, causing Bella's face to redden.

The Goth girl turned to her. "I'm Stromba," she said quietly, as the teacher gave the class instructions for the day. Stromba scooted her desk till there wasn't a millimeter between it and Bella's. Then she placed the book between them and jotted down notes from what the teacher was saying.

After class, Stromba asked Bella where she was going next. "History, with Placard."

"Me too! What a coincidence that we have first _and _second period together! Oh, I'm sorry," Stromba said, blushing. "I don't usually get excited like that."

They went to the history classroom, and sat next to each other. Bella started to ask Stromba what her favorite music was, when the teacher entered the room. Bella turned to look at him, and her heart swooned. He was very young, probably fresh out of college. His eyes were like limpid pools; his teeth sparkled. And his hair was long. In Phoenix, there was a law that men with long hair could not teach. Apparently in Forks no such law existed.

"Ah, you must be the new student!" Mr. Placard exclaimed, in a voice that caused butterflies to flutter in Bella's stomach. "Welcome to Forks. Today we'll be discussing the Roman Empire. I hope you haven't learned all the stuff I'm about to say at your old school. Now class…"

The bell rang fifty minutes later, and Stromba had to shake her hand in Bella's face to get her attention. "Earth to Bella! It's time to head to third period."

"Oh, sorry, Stromba," Bella said, coming out of her trance. She handed Stromba her schedule to look at.

"Alas, you have Home Ec next with Ms. Curn. I'll take you there. Man, I was hoping we'd have matching schedules. But that would be eerily coincidental, wouldn't it?"

Throughout Home Ec, all Bella could think of was how hot Mr. Placard was. Luckily in that class, nobody did anything. Literally. The sub just stared at the students. Some kids had out Nintendo DS, some read books or did homework, some girls did makeup. It was one of the strangest classes Bella had ever sat in, but her preoccupation with Mr. Placard kept her from noticing too much.

She asked a girl to show her where her fourth period classroom was. She did the same for fifth, Biology. Lunch would be after fifth period.

It was during Biology when she felt it. Someone was staring at her. She glanced about the room as the teacher rabbled on about mitosis and meiosis, stuff Bella already knew very well. There was a pale-faced boy with his eyes on her. He had marble skin. And he was glaring at her, as though she had done him a personal wrong. She turned back to the front, perturbed.

When the bell rang, signaling for lunch, she planned to corner that boy and ask him what his problem was. But he moved too fast for her, by the time she followed him into the hallway, he had already disappeared into the crowd.

In the lunch line, Stromba saw Bella and waved to her. They both got places of spaghetti with mystery meatballs and sat down together. Bella was facing a table where a whole bunch of marble-skinned people were sitting. For a moment, Bella just listened to Stromba talk. Then she asked, "Stromba, who is that boy staring at me?"

"What boy?" Stromba followed Bella's finger. "Oh! That's Dedward. Dedward Lucan."


	3. Chapter 3

**Bella's Promise**

**Chapter Three**

"Why isn't he eating?"

"Human food is unpalatable for him," Stromba explained.

"How can that be? He's a human, isn't he?"

"Not really. You don't have to be human to look human. Haven't you seen any of those movies where an alien disguises himself as an Earthling?"

"You mean he's…from _outer space?"_

"No, I was just giving an example. He's a vampire."

Bella laughed at this. "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard! Next you'll tell me Barack Obama is a ladybug!"

"It's true," Stromba said, unflinchingly. "But he's not the kind you see in films. At least, not exactly. You see, he doesn't suck blood. No one's ever seen him do it anyway. But he, and his siblings there, have other ways of getting nourished."

"Siblings?"

"Yes. Those are the Lucans, all the ones with marble skin. Temmer is the big one with muscles. The pretty one there is Asori. The lanky fellow is Horace, and the scrawny girl there is called Lebblice. But, seeing as they're vampires, I don't think they're blood siblings."

Bella was disgusted with the mystery meatballs. "What do you suppose is in this?"

"Probably walrus or lion."

"Ewww!" Bella threw her plastic fork across the room.

Stromba looked bemused. "I just got through telling you the Lucans are vampires,, and you're disgusted by possible walrus or lion meat?"

"I don't know…I mean, I've read _Twilight. _It might be kind of nice—even, erotic—to have your blood sucked."

"Bella, you are a case. But what's this _Twilight _book you're talking about?"

"You never heard of it? In Phoenix, every girl and her mother has read it."

"Well, pop culture doesn't hit Forks that much. We like to stay secluded."

"Weird."

"I know, but it makes us sort of quaint, doesn't it? I like being quaint." The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and that the students needed to head to sixth period. "What have you got next?" she asked, reaching for Bella's schedule. "Ah, P.E. I'll show you to the gym."

On the way there, Bella asked Stromba if she'd like to borrow _Twilight. _Stromba said yes.

Seventh period was Journalism with Mrs. Nilkes, which was a nice class to be in after P.E., which Bella hated. Mrs. Nilkes had a calico called Grubby, who roamed around the classroom while she gave instructions. Bella sometimes patted Grubby on the head when he went past her.

After school, Bella went searching all over Forks for a bookstore. When she found one, they had no copies of _Under the Volcano. _She'd have to go to La Push or Seattle to get one.

She went home and left a note for her father so that he wouldn't panic. Then she pulled out a map and drove to the neighboring city of La Push. With luck, she found _Under the Volcano _in a bookstore called B. Dalton. She bought it then returned home.

Charlie shouted at her for half an hour when she returned. He wouldn't listen to her when she said Mrs. Elkes would give her a bad grade if she didn't have a book tomorrow. Not to mention that she had to read up to page 113 by Wednesday, probably even longer than that if Mrs. Elkes gave an assigned reading the next day. But at last Charlie got absorbed in a football game on television and could no longer yell at Bella.

Robopod made cinnamon rolls for dinner that night, which Bella found odd. She wanted to make a remark about Robopod possibly being programmed wrong, but not wishing to make her father any more angry, she kept quiet.

Bella dreamt of the fat lady wearing a mushroom costume again. _"In my world, you have true love…and a love that will never end. In this ersatz imitation, you may experience love, but it will be short-lived and dull. Please enter my world, Bella. Leave this shithole."_

Upon rising, Bella wrote this dream down in her dream journal. It made no sense to her, but she liked having her dreams recorded where she could visit them anytime in the future.

Bella grabbed her copy of _Twilight _to loan to Stromba. She dressed and went downstairs to discover that Robopod had made Steak-umms with cheese and pineapples on the side for breakfast. Charlie had already left for work, so Bella couldn't complain about Robopod's screwed up time-awareness.

She had read to page 32 in _Under the Volcano, _and as she expected, she was a hundred pages behind the class once Mrs. Elkes announced what they would have to read up to by tomorrow. Swooning over Mr. Placard as he told the class the significance of the phrase, _"Et tu, Brute?" _Bella did not remember to let Stromba borrow _Twilight _Until the end of lunch. She had had to endure more glares from the boy known as Dedward Lucan in Biology. But at last she remembered, and Stromba was happy to have new reading material to absorb.

When school let out, Bella saw something odd in the parking lot. Many students were struggling to get their cars moving. If it had been one or two, she would've taken no notice. But it was about thirteen vehicles that remained stationary, no matter how hard the students were pulling on the gear shift. This caused Bella to fret. She went to her truck and got in, turn the keys, and discovered that it wouldn't go.

She cursed, wondering what was going on. Getting out of the car, she scanned the parking lot and saw that the silver Volvo was missing. Apparently Dedward Lucan's car was unaffected by whatever calamity harmed the others.

A moment later, Stromba appeared. "It's happened again," she said.

"What's happened?"

"Dedward and the Lucans. Sucked all the car battery juice out of this parking lot."

"What? That's insane!" Bella exclaimed.

"It may be insane, but it's true. I told you he wasn't a normal vampire. Check your battery."

Bella did so, and sure enough, it was out of juice. "Well, that's just great! The only thing I can say is, at least it's not raining."

A second later Bella felt a drop of water fall on her nape. "I think you spoke too soon," Stromba said.

Stromba had an umbrella handy. She suggested that both her and Bella walk until they find a shop that sells car batteries. It took an hour, for the rain started to really come down shortly after they set out. At last they found one and bought it. Stromba and Bella headed back to school, which took nearly another hour. They both climbed into Bella's truck, and Bella drove Stromba to her house. She could barely see it through the rain, but she was sure that if their friendship grew, she'd be spending a lot of time in that house.

She went home, and tried to read _Under the Volcano. _There was no way she'd catch up by the next day.

Mrs. Elkes told Bella after class on Wednesday that she'd have to be at page 165 by the following day, or she'd get a bad grade on the quiz. Bella promised she'd work on it. Mr. Placard was upset when Bella forgot who said, _"Et tu, Brute?" _She felt so bad about upsetting the teacher she had a crush on that in Home Ec she wrote a letter to him apologizing for her forgetfulness. She'd never give it to him, but it felt good writing it, all the same.

Bella was off to a bad start, and it didn't help that a guy in P.E. was staring at her during volleyball. The coach called him "Mike." If Bella had been of stronger character, she would've gone up to Mike and slapped him across the face. She thought how odd this was; if she had still lived in Phoenix and a guy stared at her like that, she'd go tell him that there were prettier girls than her. But here, she thought it was a real nuisance. Especially since Dedward Lucan wouldn't take his eyes off her in Biology classes.

But on Thursday, Dedward wasn't at school, nor were any of his siblings. Bella asked Stromba how this could be.

"I don't know. This has never happened before. Usually all the Lucans are here; I don't even remember one of them being absent since the school year started."

Stromba was pretty deep into _Twilight. _But she had a bad feeling about it. She told Bella that on Monday, she'd have something important to say.

Bella's first week of school in Forks ended, and she decided to save the piles of homework she had accumulated for Sunday. Robopod gave her some saltine crackers with cream cheese when she came home Friday, and she nearly vomited. The two tastes don't work well together. Then she drew a picture of her if she were beautiful, with a handsome boy. All fantasy, but cheering enough, even if she'd never get a boyfriend. Even if Mike Newton (Bella had learned his surname from Stromba) thought he had a crush on her, some other girl would walk into his life and take his attention from Bella. Jessica Springer (the girl who Bella had met in the counselor's office on the first day) had been seen trying to catch Mike's eye, but so far he had ignored her.

That Sunday was a horrible day in Bella's life. She started her homework at 10:00 a.m. and didn't finish until 9:30 p.m. Telling herself that she'd split her weekend homework between Saturday and Sunday from now on, she slipped into bed, still digesting Robopod's dinner (hash browns and tea cakes).

Again there was the fat lady wearing a mushroom costume in Bella's dreams. _"You can still save yourself! Jump in the mirror, Bella! Jump in the mirror, and tomorrow, you'll have your Dedward."_

Bella woke up, disgusted. Her "Dedward"? Why would she want him? In her dream journal, she wrote, "Anyone who thinks I would want a vampire who sucks juice out of car batteries for a boyfriend is nuts."

When she got to school that morning, Stromba ran up to her, brandishing her copy of _Twilight. _"Bella, this is freaky. I don't this is merely something the author imagined and wrote down. It's your life story."


	4. Chapter 4

**Bella's Promise**

**Chapter Four**

"My _what?"_

"Your life story," Stromba said. "It tells what has happened to you, and what it going to happen to you."

"That's crazy."

"But, Bella, look. Your name is Bella Swan; your father is called Charlie. You lived in Phoenix with your mother, and moved here to Forks, just like the Bella Swan in this book. There's a vampire in this school—"

"Whose name is Dedward, not Edward," Bella said."

"I don't mean it's exactly the same!" Stromba said, aghast. "There are details that are different. For instance, you became my friend instead of Jessica's. And the surname of the vampires is Lucan, not Cullen. Not to mention that there are people who actually _know _the Lucans are vampires, such as myself, and in this book the vampires do everything they can to hide their identity. But a few minor differences doesn't change the fact that this is your life story."

"Puh-lease, Stromba. I have a crush on Mr. Placard, not Dedward Lucan."

"Bella in the book didn't know she liked Edward at first, either!"

"It didn't mention any crushes on teachers."

"If it did, it would be more eerie than it is."

"Stromba, you may be my friend, but you're talking nonsense."

The bell rang, signaling that they needed to be in first period. Bella barely listened to Mrs. Elkes' instructions. When it was time to go to second period, Bella started out the door with Stromba, but Jessica Springer and two other girls cornered her. Stromba slipped away.

"I couldn't help overhearing," Jessica said. "You have a crush on Mr. Placard?"

Bella's face became red. "I don't know what you thought you heard, but that wasn't it," she said, lamely.

"You're blushing. But I know how you can get involved with a teacher."

"I don't want your help," Bella said, starting to walk past Jessica and her friends. The two other girls grabbed her, pushing her against the wall.

"You will listen to Jessica," one of them said. She was tall and had red hair.

"Look, Bella, I know you like Mr. Placard," Jessica said. "Melissa here has that class with you. She sees you staring at him every day. I want to help you get with him."

"B-but" Bella stammered. "Teachers and students…forbidden…"

"Oh, not in Forks," Jessica said promptly. "Here, you might be scoffed at by other people, but it's not illegal or anything. Although your father is a policeman, so it might make a difference…"

"It will _not _make a difference," Bella said, defensively. "Anything other Forks girls can do I can do as well. Well, except…"

"Except what?"

"Except get guys. Look, I'm ugly."

"Bella, Bella, Bella," Jessica said, shaking her head. "You don't want a guy. You want a man. And Stephen Placard is that man."

"His first name is Stephen?"

"Yes. Now, let Melissa escort you to class, and this afternoon I'll coach you on how to seduce a teacher. Okay?" Jessica patted Bella's shoulder, and the tall, red-headed girl walked with Bella toward Mr. Placard's classroom.

"You're five minutes late, girls," he said when they entered. "Homework, please." Bella turned hers in, and as she did so, her hand brushed Mr. Placard's. She nearly swooned, but somehow made it back to her desk.

So, Jessica Springer had a way of getting her involved with Mr. Placard, did she? And by the looks of it, Melissa would ensure that Bella was there for the afternoon tutorials in man-baiting Jessica would be giving her.

Bella imagined kissing Mr. Placard. His lips and hers would meet in total bliss. Birds would be singing and trumpets would be blaring. But Bella still believed that she was ugly and that nothing Jessica could do to her would make her appealing.

At lunch, she tried to keep out of Melissa's sight, and she knew that sitting with Stromba at their usual table would make it easy for Melissa to find her. So she headed toward a table where several girls sat. When she was too feet away from it, however, she felt a prickling in the back of her neck. She sank to the floor as the world turned black.

"…the best catch you've ever made," Bella heard someone saying.

It took a couple of minutes to open her eyes. When she did, she saw a petite girl with marble skin, standing next to a beautiful girl, who also had marble skin. Bella found that she lay on a bed covered with lacey sheets, There were windows the size of elephants, and Bella could see that outside it was night. Aligning the walls of the room she was in were stuffed animals, most of them teddy bears. There was also a paper chain strung between the stuffed animals, which drew Bella's eye, since she had not seen a paper chain since she was eight.

"She's awake!" exclaimed the beautiful girl.

"So she is. You're the one our brother wants, aren't you?" the petite girl addressed Bella.

"Your brother?" Bella asked, dimly.

"Well, not biologically our brother. We're vampires, see. Carlisle Lucan takes care of us, so we call him 'father.' Dedward, Asori and I do, anyway."

"You're the one called Alice?"

"Alice? No!" The petite girl wrinkled her nose. "I'm Lebblice. Whoever told you I had a boring name like 'Alice' ought to have their blood sucked out of them."

"Oh no," Bella said. "It's just because I'm groggy that I didn't recall your name. I only heard it once, after all. And it's not exactly easy to remember."

"No, I suppose not," Lebblice said. "I was the one who bit you," she added.

"Excuse me?"

"Didn't you feel a prickling on your nape during lunch today?" Bella nodded. "That was me. I only sucked enough of your blood to knock you unconscious for a few hours. Then I brought you here."

"Why did you do this?" Bella asked, trying not to squirm at the word "blood."

"To save you from Jessica Springer. I have foresight, you know."

"What is foresight?"

But this time, the beautiful girl spoke. "Lebb, I don't think you should be giving her fruit about our abilities."

"Oh, Asori, she's not going to tell anyone."

"How do you know?"

"Because Dedward will be here soon. And she'll be fashioned into one of us."

Bella heard this and knew she had to escape somehow, for it sounded like they intended to make her into a vampire. That was the last thing she wanted. She had her whole life ahead of her, and now these…_monsters _wanted to take it away.

"Foresight is the ability to see things in the future," Lebblice said. "I saw Jessica and two other girls corner you outside your English classroom. I heard them speak about hooking you up with a teacher. I don't know what you felt about that, but when I discussed it with my family, we decided that the best thing to do would be to prevent you from meeting with these girls and possibly becoming a teacher's pet, in a…uh, romantic sense. Better to have Dedward turn you into one of us. Then if Mr. Placard _does _become attracted to you, you'll have the means to kill him."

This, of all things, struck Bella with horror. She was here because the Lucans wanted her to _kill _Mr. Placard? They were asking her to kill her crush, to murder the man whose lips she wished her own could brush! .This sounded like some creepy scene from an R.L. Stine novel…

But this wasn't an R.L. Stine novel. This was real life.

And then they heard some bells. _Clang! Clang! Clang! _Asori and Lebblice looked flustered. But a moment later Asori composed herself enough to say, "Bella Swan, prepare to meet our brother, the one, the only, Dedward Lucan!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Bella's Promise**

**Chapter Five**

Dedward strode in, or rather, glided. His feet didn't quite touch the ground.

"Ah, my darling sisters have brought my prey. I can't think you enough." He kissed Lebblice on the cheek. It looked like he was going to kiss Asori on the cheek as well, but his lips moved to greet hers.

When their lips unlocked, Asori said, "How dare you! You know that Temmer is my mate!"

"Doesn't mean you can't get kissed by a handsomer fellow, does it? You only like Temmer because he's brawny."

"So what? You only like me because I'm—"

"Guys, help! Bella's escaping!"

Lebblice was holding Bella fast, but Bella was stronger. The instant Dedward and Asori began arguing, Bella leaped out of bed, ready to leave the room and somehow get out of the building she was trapped in unnoticed. But Lebblice had noticed her.

Dedward was there in a second, and he pushed Bella back onto the bed. She screamed. Dedward kept saying, "Calm down, sunshine. It'll be over in a minute."

His lips were approaching her neck. They were drawing closer…closer…

"Wait!" Bella exclaimed.

"What is it?" Dedward asked, still holding firmly to her shoulder.

"You're trying to turn me into a monster, right?"

"A…monster? I wouldn't use that word for it. Look at Asori. She's too beautiful to be a monster."

"Where I come from, vampires are monsters," Bella said, resolutely.

"Well, where we come from, vampires are necessary," Dedward said. "Better to be undead than dead."

"But there's no reason to kill me. Or whatever you call making me one of you."

"Oh, Bella. I don't want to kill you, not really. But I must taste your blood."

"_Must?"_

"It's too irresistible. That's why I haven't been at school for the last three days. I've been afraid I would attack you in the middle of Biology, or during lunch."

"Well, if you want my blood so badly, you can have a little. But that doesn't mean you have to turn me into another vampire."

"But Bella…your blood has a stronger scent than other people's blood. If I started drinking, I'd never stop. There's a possibility that you'd die, without becoming a vampire."

"Then I forbid you from bringing your lips anywhere near my neck!"

"You're in no position to prevent me from feasting, Bella."

"Don't worry about a thing," Asori said. "We'll only let him drink enough to let you become a vampire. That's why Lebb and I are here. When the time is right, we'll pull him off you, so that you don't die."

"Okay," Bella managed to croak. Dedward smiled and moved his lips toward her neck again. But then she yelped, before his teeth had brushed her neck.

"What now, Bella?" he asked.

"Is there anything I can do to keep you from doing this? Or delay it?"

"No. I'm sorry, Bella."

"Wait, Dedward, there is something," said Lebblice. She glided over to where her brother stood and whispered in his ear.

"Ah, yes, that would work. Okay, Bella, we have come to the conclusion that there is something you can do which will keep me from making you a vampire."

"What is that?"

Dedward smiled maliciously. "Kill Mr. Placard."

Bella stared at him. "Ha-ha. Joke's over. What's the _real _thing I can do to save my life?"

"That's it. It isn't a joke. Kill Mr. Placard, or I will bite you."

Asori answered Bella's questioning look. "Dedward fears Mr. Placard; he gives the most difficult tests. If you kill him, a substitute or replacement teacher will come along, and Dedward will be able to graduate with relative ease."

"I can't do that," Bella choked.

"Well, then, time for me to feast," said Dedward. He lunged for her neck.

"Hold it! If you give me, say, a week, I may be able to do something."

Dedward straightened up again. "I like the sound of negotiation. Yes, we'll give you eight days to ensure Mr. Placard is incapacitated for the remainder of the year. Get out of bed."

Bella did so.

"Lebb, grab that four-foot tall teddy bear. I'll carry it to your car; you'll drive Bella home. It's not safe for me to."

Lebblice grabbed a brown teddy bear that Dedward had pointed at and handed it to him. Everyone except Asori left the room.

"Now, Bella, this teddy will remind you how much time you have left. Each day that Mr. Placard is still at the school, a piece of the bear will disappear. By the eighth day, the entire bear will have vanished, and if nothing has been done by then, you'll find yourself in the room we just left again. And this time, there will be no mercy. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes…Dedward," Bella murmured.

None of them spoke as they walked through three hallways, four giant rooms, and the vestibule to get outside the Lucan mansion. They reached Lebblice's car, a green Evor. Bella got in the passenger seat, and Dedward stuffed the teddy bear in the back. The windows in the front seat were rolled down, and Dedward said, "Personally, I'm looking forward to tasting your blood. But I will give you this chance. I don't know why exactly I'm being so generous, but so it goes. Hope to see you here again in eight days time."

Lebblice drove like crazy, not stopping at red lights, nearly crashing into several buildings, and almost running over pedestrians. At last they reached Bella's house. Bella wondered slightly how Lebblice knew where she lived. She got out of the car and started for the door when Lebblice rolled her window down and said, "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Bella ran back and got the teddy bear out, then watched as Lebblice drove away. She turned back to the house, unlocked the front door, and entered. Charlie started yelling at her the minute she shut the door. Thhe yelling went on for an hour, until Bella came up with an alibi about going to a carnival with a new boyfriend, Mike Newton, at La Push. She figured the giant teddy bear would corroborate this story, though Charlie could easily check with the authorities in La Push the next day to find out if there really was a carnival. Once he found out the truth, there was bound to be hell to pay. Till that time, Bella had more pressing matters to attend to.


End file.
